Do you have a smartwatch, and why would/wouldn't you recommend it?

[surreal depot]

I've become quite interested in getting myself a smartwatch! I like the thought of being able to monitor my health, which is one reason I'd like to get one. Other than that, I have some project ideas I'd like to try out that would implement the watch into them.

The trouble is, there are a LOT of options, some super cheap, and some really expensive, with a variety of ranging features. I was hoping to find one that could connect to my phone, maybe have gps, or at least a compass.

What has your experience been with this sort of tech?

[indigo dawn]

In my experience I just stop using them at one point since the daily charging is annoying. I actually just ordered an old pebble watch to try. Way fewer features, basically just notifications but weeks of battery. They have open source it recently (Google bought them as a package when they took over fitbit) and the founders have announced a reboot of the company and a new watch is coming.

https://repebble.com/

[scarlet umbra]

https://www.garmin.com/en-US/p/1057989#specs I got this one about a year ago. I turned off nearly all notifications from the phone except for alarms and calendar. It says it has gps and compass, but I've never used that feature. It does count steps and constant heart rate monitoring, since that's what I needed it for. The battery also lasts about a week. I can also have custom watch faces which is nice. It also doesn't require a subscription, actually no subscription that I know of. Hope it helps

[surreal depot]

I've seen this thingy before! The battery isn't a concern of mine though, and neither are the notifications.
It seems like a fun, simplistic little device, but ultimately lacks some features I'm looking for.

[indigo dawn]

I did like the Pixel Watch but it's a bit small for me I'd like a bigger one.

[surreal depot]

I've been debating what size of watch I'd like to get, i'd prefer not to get anything rectangular, as it might clash with the aesthetic I'm shooting for, but all of the circular watches tend to be pretty big

I'll make a compromise though.

Aside from fitness tracking and timekeeping, I was hoping to modify a watch ever so slightly to look like a pocket watch.

Does it detract from its actual functionality? Yes!
Will it look kinda tacky? Probably!
Will it still be cool? Hell yeah 😎

[surreal depot]

I saw a lot of these at Best buy recently, thank goodness there's no subscription needed, that'd be the worst.
Not everything needs a subscription, and I'd prefer to avoid one if I can!

It's a little pricey, but it does look like a nice watch, I'll take a peek into this brand a little more!

[scarlet umbra]

Fair. I managed to get 20% off thanks to my work's insurance. May be worth seeing if your insurance has any discounts for health adjacent things.

I do agree that it's CHONKY. I've worn a normal like $25 target watch for maybe 18 years. The face is about the same size, but the wrist band is much wider than what I'm used to. I'm debating making my own like 15 or 10mm band

[surreal depot]

I have the opportunity to get work insurance, however, I'm still covered under a family plan, and I don't know what the limitations of that are. I'll ask though!

I've personally become quite fascinated with the ergonomic watch bands that some companies offer, and I have plenty of good quality scraps of leather I can use to make one. And this is where size becomes important, as a bigger watch likely won't be as secure as a smaller one. I know they're not as practical as normal watch bands, but I just love the style too much.

[indigo dawn]

The pixel watches are round and pretty small, that's my problem with them but if that's what you're looking for they might be for you.

[scarlet umbra]

Interesting. Theoretically, the pulse should still be readable

[indigo dawn]

The pixel watches don't have the normal connections parts they should be easily modified for a pocket watch look and feel.

One thing I've seen popup are just esp32 with a round display to programm yourself ... though no fitness tracking

Seems it's a thing that's sold

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51kPsm2tLzL._AC_SL1500_.jpg

[scarlet umbra]

Oooo that's cool

omg. You could make a face, turn it into either a pocket watch or that fancy wrist band adjacent, and it would be good for larping

[indigo dawn]

I'm so annoyed by the fitness tracking on the quest 3 not synching with google that I completely stopped tracking anything...

[surreal depot]

Indeed! Hence why I think a pocket watch cosmetic mod would suit these things well.
If possible, i'd love to upload my own watch faces

[scarlet umbra]

yeaaah. My healthcare accepts fitbit tracking but not garmin. Which reminds me, I need to finish doing that connection stuff

[indigo dawn]

Never heard of this brand but you could probably make/print something similar for other watches. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=llOmnUJgOnQ

[scarlet umbra]

https://garmin.watchfacebuilder.com/ You can make your own watch face. This is a subscription though and in order to even save, you need a sub. Thankfully it does have a "Buy for 1 month access for $5" feature

[surreal depot]

This is another brand I've found in my search for a smart watch, and it's currently my #1 contender.
It's cheap(ish), round, has various tracking, and I could maybe make an ergonomic band for it.
https://us.amazfit.com/

The one I'm currently looking at is the Amazfit active 2

[indigo dawn]

Ohh the newer pixel watches are available in two sizes 41mm and 45mm

The OnePlus or Nothing watch was also suposed to be pretty good.

[surreal depot]

A former trainee of mine had a Nothing watch, which sparked my interest in this stuff, but, I've heard from him that the connectivity isn't the greatest, and it's still a bit clunky.

[indigo dawn]

Yeah but the nothing watch is also just 69€

[surreal depot]

That's one I might modify into a pocket watch, since I would basically have to grind off the band mounts.

[indigo dawn]

Man the pixel watch 3 price in comparison ... how can that be justified ...

[surreal depot]

¯_(ツ)_/¯

[indigo dawn]

I just back when the 7 Pro was the current pixel used it as an excuse to upgrade my phone and get a "free" watch

[surreal depot]

That doesn't sound like a terrible deal, granted, I don't know much about pixel products.

[indigo dawn]

The phone was to expensive to otherwise justify but google gives long guaranteed updates at 5 years, I wouldn't use something that doesn't get updates anymore.

[surreal depot]

In this age of tech, I would certainly want something that gets consistent updates! However, having some offline stuff that doesn't require much updating would be nice too.

[indigo dawn]

true fortunately the cloud seems to be slowly going away again which is nice

at least in a professional setting

[daring ermine]

No smartwatch here 🙂
Battery life sucks
Requires smartphone nearby for full features
Yet another source of distractions and interruptions- no thank you!

I have a Casio Royals AE 1200 if I remember correctly and it does everything I would want from a smartwatch, with a 10 years battery life.

[surreal depot]

Precisely the reason I want to mess around with one! The cons you have stated are completely valid, and are a good reason not to get a smartwatch, but I want to do more than just tell time with the device. (Hence the plans for modifications)

I eventually want to just create my own watch, I've recently become quite enamoured with Nixie watches, but that is a project for the far future.

[daring ermine]

I would recommend checking the following if you’re looking to experiment!

Lilygo T-Watch series - https://lilygo.cc/collections/wearable-kit

Casio F91 Sensorwatch mod - https://www.sensorwatch.net/

[surreal depot]

These are kinda cool!
I'm going to save these for later, thank you!

[spare dagger]

I like my garmin

It does all the things I needs it to do

And fits my modertly active outdoorish lifestyle

My garmin has the ability to do bluetooth music without a phone, internal sat nav without need a phone connection, general health tracking, fall detection when exercising and will alert a set list of people, and soon

*and more

It is a venue 3 I think

I charge it every 3 to 4 days

I had an earlier samsung watch and another garmin in the past.
I was not impressed with the samsung

[indigo dawn]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CUFnb7WQYx8

Seems there's a new watch released. Looks pretty good imho. And by that I mean looks like a classic watch and not like a toy.

Hmm the comments seem pretty divided on those watches...

[surreal depot]

I've seen the OnePlus brand more often as of recent, and I did see that watch pop up as well.
However, I did make a decision on a smart watch!

I ultimately went for the Amazfit Balance. It seemed like the best blend of features and aesthetics, as well as price. So far, I am loving it! It's so much fun to use this device, and the ability to track my general health statistics is a nice bonus! I haven't really messed around with any of the 'adventure' features like gps or maps, but I'll probably use that more in the future when I get to take some of my new tech out for a spin later this year.

The only issue I'm currently encountering, is the wristband. It's just not super comfy, but that's likely because I'm not used to wearing it.

[indigo dawn]

Ahh nice. Yeah watches take some getting used to, when you haven't worn them in a while.